Let's remember our good friends, Pam and Robyn, right now, too. Pam's mother, Robyn's grandmother, Margaret, passed away on Friday. Her funeral was yesterday. She lived to the glorious age of 99 years old. Just knowing her daughter and granddaughter, I feel that this was a magnificent mother.

And I would also ask that you please remember my husband and his family in your prayers. My MIL has terminal cancer that is inoperable. And our nephew is facing some tough times because of a bad decision earlier this year. Our hope is that some good is going to come from this situation and we already see God at work, performing a miracle, in our little family.

Thank you Logan for your kind remarks. When someone is 99 it is sort of inevitable that they don't have much time left. On the other hand, it is actually because they have been around so long that one just starts to feel that they will always be there. We are doing OK and are praying for your situations too Logan.

Richard and I have noted that we have a couple of things in common - we are both Scorpios and now we have a shared loss. Richard keep those memories of the good times rolling around in your head. Your mom wouldn't want it any other way. (((hugs)))

All tests indicate that I have a tumor on one of my parathyroid glands. This causes very high calcium levels, which can cause headaches (as one symptom) and my dr. says he's seen people be diagnosed as clinically crazy from the high calcium levels (where their calcium levels were lower than mine!). I am waiting for a referral to a surgeon who can 1) give me a 2nd opinion and 2) get rid of it. I mostly need prayers for patience.

PRAYERS please for Barbara. She has beat back every new spread of cancer from her original diagnosis of breast cancer over six years ago. She and her husband moved to a gorgeous house in southern Alberta, but she had to move back to Calgary in August, as another "lesion" had shown up.

Her husband sends out updates every so often, and this just arrived in my e-mail box, which says it all:

Dear friends and family,

This is another quick update on Barbara and I apologise for the lack of information over the last couple of months. After Barbara moved back to Calgary in late August she experienced a slow but steady decline in her condition which appeared to accelerate in late October at which time I moved back to Calgary to be with her at Mark, Martina and Shimon’s house. Two weeks ago her condition seriously worsened just two days before she was to start a new round of therapy involving Herceptin and Methotrexate, and she had to be transported to the Emergency Department of the Foothills Hospital. She was eventually transferred to the Palliative Care Unit of the Tom Baker Cancer unit (unit 47) where she still is. Tests have shown that the brain tumour is still the same size that it was 9 months ago and that there is no new uptake anywhere else, but she has continued to decline and is now completely unable to walk and finds talking difficult. These symptoms became more acute four days ago following an MRI which lasted about an hour and which appears to have traumatized her. The only physical change observed from the MRI was a very local spread of the cancer from the left cerebellum into the adjacent Meninges, but there be other non-detectable sites. We have a meeting with the oncologists and the rest of the medical team tomorrow to review the situation and perhaps we shall find out if and when she might be able to start treatment. At the moment Barbara is really not up to receiving visitors and if you plan to come to the hospital I should be grateful if you could phone me first to ascertain the current situation (either at Mark’s or my cell phone xxx-xxx-xxxx I am at the hospital all day). Barbara has greatly appreciated and has benefited from all your messages and visits up to this time and we hope that she will again be able to receive visitors again soon. She is still the indomitable Barbara that we all know and love and is still fighting hard, but after six and a half years and three previous surmounted metastases I fear that she is weakening, but we all still have great hope.

With love and best wishes,

Peter

Barbara and Peter attended church regularly where I go. They were well-loved. Barbara was nonchalant about arriving with her bald head - she might wear a light hat in summer.

One year she was participating in the Run for Breast Cancer, though she planned only to walk. She announced this from the pulpit, and cheerfully asked for donations, saying, "I know I've got you all in a half-Nelson standing up here with my bald head!" Of course all who could donated. How could we not?

She has taken good vitamins, done her homework, kept healthy and positive about all. It's often suggested to people who will lose all their hair due to chemo or other treatments that they have their hair all cut off before, as it gives one a sense of control over that, at least.

Barbara told me that she and Peter had candles and soft music - and he cut her hair off for her. I get a bit of LES thinking of how loving a moment that was for both.

Barbara has always been an inspiration to me. The night before her mastectomy, she held a "Bye Bye Boob" party. That inspired me to have a Bye Bye Period party last year before my hysterectomy.

Hate to come into this thread because it seems I spent a lot of my year asking for prayers, but I have a few to add if you don't mind.

My dear friend's mother is going into surgery today - it's a serious surgery, she's having a HUGE hernie removed. I mean HUGE. They are unsure if she's going to make it or not.

Secondly, my grandmother's sister is deathly ill and they don't know if she's going to make it. My grandma is still grieving from my papa's death, this is just breaking her heart even more. Please keep her sister and my grandmother in your thoughts.

Thank you and hugs to you all!

~Kay, Athena, Ace, Kiara, Mufasa, & Alice!"So baby take a axe to your makeup kit
Set ablaze the billboards and their advertisements
Love with all your hearts and never forget
How good it feels to be alive
And strive for your desire"
-rx bandits